One of the biggest headaches for modern users is undoubtedly the failures in the disks and USB sticks . It is a serious case since in these storage devices we usually store very important personal information.
That is why when we encounter this scenario we tend to despair a bit. We all care about our information. Fortunately in Windows there is a free tool developed to solve these types of errors .
In this article we are going to show you what the CHKDSK command of Windows 10, 8 and 7 is for, so you can repair your disks and other storage devices every time they start giving you problems.
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CHKDSK command What is it and what is it for?
CHKDS is a diminutive for CheckDisk, which in Spanish would be a checker or disk analyzer. What he does is what his name indicates; is responsible for analyzing storage units such as USB flash drive, physical disks (SSD) and any other device with one of these.
Its beginnings date back to the 1990s, when Microsoft decided to implement them in its operating system. At that time it was automatically executed after starting the OS to verify that there were no errors , especially after a sudden blackout of the equipment.
However, Microsoft was not its inventor. Its creation dates back to the beginnings of computing itself, based on other similar tools that had been integrated into systems such as MS-DOS . But it was not until its inclusion in Windows that its use became popular with the average user.
The CHKDSK command is very useful even today, and its concepts are the basis of many premium programs that offer disk analysis and repair solutions.
With it we can do things like :
- Analyze and identify physical errors on disks and storage devices.
- Repair physical errors on disks and storage devices.
- Monitor the state and performance of the disk in real time.
Steps to use the CheckDisk command to analyze and repair errors in disks USB
You already know what this command is and what it is for, and now we are going to teach you how to use it both to analyze a disk and to repair the errors that exist in it. These steps are for Windows 10, but also apply for versions 7 and 8 .
To analyze disk
Analyzing a disk with CHKDSK is one of the easiest things you can do as a Windows user. What you should do is follow our instructions:
- In the start menu of your computer type “CMD” and in the result that appears you right click and select “Run as administrator”.
- This will open the console of the «Symbol of the system», in which we will activate the command. Once it is open, simply type “CHKDSK” and click on “Enter”, which will start the tool.
- After the analysis, you will see the results in a section equal to the one shown in the image.
The result of this analysis was positive since no problem was found, this disk is in perfect condition .
To repair errors found
If you find an error after performing the analysis with the CheckDisck, what you should do is use the different parameters that it allows to repair errors. What you should do is that with the “Command Prompt” window still open, execute the “chkdsk G: / f / r / x” command.
These parameters work for:
- / F: fix disk volume errors.
- / R: locate errors in bad disk sectors.
- / X: check the volume.
Once you do the above, a process will begin that will take several minutes until it is completed. After that you will have to restart the computer and then perform another analysis with CHKDSK to verify that there is no error yet.
List of parameters that can be used with the Windows 10 disk analyzer
In addition to the parameters we taught you before, there are also others that perform more specific functions. We are not going to fool you, to be able to use them at a high level you will have to investigate a lot about computer storage solutions since many of them are intended for professional use.
But nothing you learn weighs on you so we proceed to show you the main parameters of CHKDSK. Check out the following:
- / f: Corrects errors in the volume for what should be blocked.
- / i: NTFS only. Basic disk analysis, without going deep.
- / l: NTFS only. Show the real-time size of the entire log file.
- / p: Check any disk, even though it is not marked as “dirty” .
- / r: Locate the bad sectors of the disk and retrieve all readable information (implies / fy /p).
- / v: In FAT: shows the full path and name of all data in the volume. In NTFS: shows you the messages after cleaning if there are any.
- / x: NTFS only. Forces the volume to be dismounted first, if necessary.
- / b: NTFS only, from Vista. Clear the list of very bad sectors in the volume.
- / ?: shows you the list of available parameters CHKDSK.
List of the best programs and applications to analyze physical disks and identify errors
Well, CHKDSK is an excellent tool, but it doesn’t do everything. Fortunately, there are many easier-to-use programs that frankly are more powerful in their work, since this command is still simply basic computing.
Next, we will present 5 excellent programs that are the perfect alternative to Windows CheckDisk:
CrystalDiskInfo
This is a fairly complete program that, although not as good in the solutions section, offers you one of the most complete damage reports. You will get important data from the SMART parameters of your disks, and you can also analyze all types of storage devices .
This is an open source program, so you won’t have to pay anything to get it on your computer. It has other interesting functions such as activating notifications of risk and damage reports in real time, as well as doing small tasks such as freeing the cache and little else.
HDDScan
This is a more powerful option than the previous one because it has very similar features, such as SMART parameter reports, but with many better bug fixes on your internal or external storage devices .
It is very easy to carry since it does not need installation and does not weigh at all, so you can take it on a USB to use it on any computer that needs a complete diagnosis of what is happening inside it strong>. You can perform various disk performance tests as well as delete unnecessary data in the cache.
EASIS Drive Check
A very basic but efficient tool. With it you can get very complete reports of everything that happens inside your discs, as well as perform various performance tests of this, which will indicate if a hard reset or a restoration is necessary complete system to be able to delete unnecessary files.
It’s completely free and has no advertising, so you shouldn’t have an excuse not to use it. It is easy to handle since opening the interface only gives you two options; perform a SMART or surface test .